With all the natural disasters happening throughout the world, unscrupulous scammers are looking to take advantage of our empathy and generosity as we seek ways to help the victims of those disasters. These scammers will be soliciting donations using telephone messages, emails, and even social networking services like Facebook.

One of the trending online fraud schemes involves being contacted by either friends or relatives via email or through social networking services like Facebook about receiving large amounts of money through investments, a class action lawsuit, or even a random contest drawing. However, these “friends” or “relatives” are NOT who they claim to be.

Purchasing medication and even filling prescriptions online can be a risky process, but the chances of being victimized can be greatly reduced by taking a few necessary precautions. Avoid email scams Try not to respond to email “spam.” But if you are inclined to do...

Telephone scams have been around for years, even before the birth of the internet, and they are just as dangerous as their online counterparts. Because modern telephone networks use digital technology, it is easy for cybercriminals to manipulate what appears in the Caller ID to trick you into thinking you are receiving a call from a trusted source. This tactic is called “spoofing.”

One of the most common problems I encounter investigating a cybercrime is that the victim fails to provide any records and/or documentation to support their claim that they have been victimized. This is often also true of others reporting the crime, either with the...

What would happen if cybercriminals took control of your email account? They would have access to all the services and people you communicate with. These criminals will be able to impersonate you, drain your financial nest egg and ruin your life! To protect yourself,...

A simple way to protect your online identity is to use strong passwords. Use any or combine all five of these steps to create strong passwords. Step 1 Select a non-English word at least eight characters long — for example, the Hawaiian word kapakahi, meaning...

by Christopher Duque, Cybercrime Investigator. DPA Computer users can get “victimized” online simply because they don’t spend enough time keeping their devices up to speed. Hackers are able to compromise our devices daily if we don’t update the software on our...